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Wednesday, 27 November 2013

For today's post I wanted to share my top five paranormal/supernatural reads with you guys. I don't read a massive amount of paranormal but I do have a few favourites so I thought I'd put a little list together for anybody else who isn't a big reader of these genres.

Perfect for fans of the dark and kooky, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is a beautifully presented book and the cover is just as strong as the story inside. Click here for my review.

Fracture was one of the most pleasantly surprising books I read in 2012 and I'd really recommend this one for any contemporary fans who are looking to read more books with supernatural elements. Click here for my review.

Oh, this is just such a fun, well-written series. Alyxandra Harvey is the queen of snappy dialogue and this is, hands down, my favourite paranormal series that centres around vampires. Click here for my review of book one.

Simply put, this is one of the most stunning, beautifully-written novels I've read in years. Absolutely unique in every day, this gem of a book deserves to be read by every fiction fan. Click here for my review.

Paranormal romance is not usually my bag, but I fell completely under this book's spell and would recommend this to any fans of a gorgeous love story. Click here for my review.

So which books would you put in your top five paranormal/supernatural books?

Monday, 25 November 2013

This is a really weird statement to type: There are only five weeks left of 2013. SAY WHAT?

It's flown by, hasn't it? I know everybody's saying the same thing but it really is strange to think in such a short space of time we'll be heading into 2014. Golly gee.

So, it's a month today until Christmas, which means the nights are going to get even longer and the weather colder so it's the perfect opportunity to hibernate with a nice stack of books for the next few weeks. Well, that's my plan anyway. Reading and eating is the basic gist.

I've had a rifle through my shelves and pulled out a few books I've been meaning to read for ages and ages but, as is always the case, haven't got round to.

So there are the books I'm hoping to read before the end of 2013:

Weirdos vs. Quimboids - Natasha Desborough

Days of Blood and Starlight - Laini Taylor

Gone Girl - Gillian Flynn

Let It Snow - John Green/Maureen Johnson/Lauren Myracle

She Is Not Invisible - Marcus Sedgwick

Have you read any of my picks? What did you think? Have you got yourself a reading list planned for the end of 2013?

Monday, 18 November 2013

Morning all, hope you're all having a good Monday!I've been sent the following press release by Egmont and I wanted to share it with you all today as I can't wait for Suicide Notes for Beautiful Girls to come out. We have a long wait, unfortunately, as it isn't out until 2015! For more information about Suicide Notes for Beautiful Girls, have a read of the below:

Egmont Press is delighted to announce the acquisition of two books by Lynn Weingarten, an exciting YA novelist with a dedicated following in the US. Her first book Suicide Notes for Beautiful Girls will publish in the UK in Spring 2015.

Sexy and stylish, Suicide Notes for Beautiful Girls is a breathless tale of lies and deceit as the protagonist, June, is swept in to a conspiracy she can barely conceive of in the wake of her best friend’s death.

Stella Paskins commented ‘I rarely take a risk on partial manuscripts, but with its clever, atmospheric writing, edgy themes and addictive storyline, I just had to buy it for Electric Monkey.’

Nicola Barr at Greene and Heaton said, ‘Suicide Notes for Beautiful Girls is not just the best title I’ve come across in ages, it’s simply the best thriller, YA or otherwise. If Gone Girl made you think a twist would never surprise you again, think again. Egmont will do the most exciting job of bringing the novel to UK readers.’

Tuesday, 12 November 2013

Published: 29th August 2013, Electric MonkeyPages: 384 pages, paperbackSeries/standalone?: A companion novel will be released next year - yeahhh!

Summary (from Goodreads):Every day a different body. Every day a different life. Every day in love with the same girl.There’s never any warning about where it will be or who it will be. A has made peace with that, even established guidelines by which to live: Never get too attached. Avoid being noticed. Do not interfere.

It’s all fine until the morning that A wakes up in the body of Justin and meets Justin’s girlfriend, Rhiannon. From that moment, the rules by which A has been living no longer apply. Because finally A has found someone he wants to be with—day in, day out, day after day.

My review:

First impressions: From the moment I read the press release for this book I was desperate to read it. David Levithan = check, excellent premise = check, what's not to love? While I could take or leave the cover I was completely intrigued by the premise and bumped this one right to the top of my TBR list. Luckily, my first impressions were correct.

Plot: Completely unique and not like anything I've read before, our protagonist, A, wakes up every day (get it?) in a different person's body. A isn't tied to any gender, race or religion, just that each body A inhabits is the same age as A currently is. In a market so saturated with similar stories it's always wonderful to pick something up that feels refreshingly new and like undiscovered territory. One of Levithan's strengths is his individuality as a writer and he's done is yet again with Every Day. I'm sure we'll see a whole host of books coming out in the next couple of years that try to do with Every Day does, but I don't think anything will match up to A's delicately and beautifully told love story.

Writing: Oh, the writing! Instead of talking about sentence structure and pacing I just want to tell you my reaction to the last third of this book because it absolutely ripped me a new one (heart, not rump, just in case you were concerned). I woke up early one morning so decided to finish off reading Every Day in the living room, to give my boyfriend a lay in. By the time I reached the final twenty pages I had tears streaming down my cheeks, I'd underlined tens of lines because the quotes were so beautiful and was, basically, an absolute mess. I finished the book and, still weeping, climbed back into my bed with my boyfriend and soaked his shoulder with my tears. When my incessant sobbing woke him up he was convinced something terrible had happened and kept asking me what was wrong. My response? "It *sob* was *sob* so *sob* SAAAAAAAAD." Love is what really gets me in books; real, true love that makes my heart hurt. And, boy, does Every Day pack a powerful punch when it comes to love.

Characters: A is such a wonderful character and a clever creation. With A having no body, no ties to any race or background or sexuality, A is extremely accessible to anybody who picks up this book. Every Day includes everybody, it's for everybody, it's about everybody. The characters span all walks of life and, due to the nature of the story, there's something in this book for all kinds of readers. You will resonate with at least one of the characters, and that's something that certainly can't be said for a lot of books out there at the moment. As well as being a wholly entertaining book, I'd say Every Day is an important one, too.

Final thoughts: Rivalling The Bunker Diary as my favourite read of 2013, I haven't cried so hard at a book since The Knife of Never Letting Go.